Implementation Quality in Context: A Case Study of Social and Emotional Learning at a Community School

Social and emotional learning (SEL) has been shown to have positive impacts on student and school outcomes; attending to social-emotional competencies in students and staff leads to increased academic achievement and improved school climate. Additionally, the efficacy of SEL interventions has been directly linked to the quality of implementation. However, high-quality implementation of SEL interventions has been difficult to operationalize in terms of identifying essential intervention components and contextual factors that enhance implementation quality. In order to effectively implement SEL and achieve desired outcomes, practitioners require increased clarity on how to optimize the implementation quality of SEL interventions within their particular school contexts. Using a single case study design, this study examined the implementation of an SEL intervention at a community school in order to determine which intervention components and contextual factors were most effective in promoting high-quality implementation. Qualitative data from interviews, observations, documents, artifacts, and surveys were analyzed to generate a rich, in-depth narrative of the first two years of SEL implementation; special attention was paid to the perspectives and experiences of the school’s implementation team. Through careful description and investigation of the implementation process and related contextual factors, this instrumental case study aims to refine the conceptual framework for evaluating the implementation quality of SEL interventions. Findings indicated that even with some deviations from the intervention model, the community school achieved considerable success with SEL implementation. While the implementation process was hindered by several intervention components and contextual factors—primarily external stressors, limited resources, and limited structural supports—implementation quality was significantly enhanced by the intervention’s support system, SEL-oriented school culture and climate, and efficacy of the implementation team. These findings contribute to the refinement of the conceptual framework for evaluating SEL implementation by identifying intervention components, contextual factors, and contextually appropriate adaptations with the greatest impacts on implementation quality. Findings from this study also have practical implications for pre-implementation strategies, support system components, and macro- and school-level policies related to SEL implementation; findings are relevant to practitioners in similar school settings who wish to maximize the implementation quality of future SEL interventions